Healthy Eating Could Save You More Than $2,000 a Year!

THE ARGUS GROUP|03 MARCH 2016

It’s easy to write off fresh fruit and vegetables as “too expensive”. In many ways, it doesn’t seem right to pay $9 for a small packet of fresh berries, especially when the cost can be much lower overseas. However, many of us don’t think twice about buying fruit punch, potato chips, popcorn or cake. In reality, these products can cost a lot more.

Argus certainly wants to promote the health benefits of eating five servings of fruits and vegetables daily, but we want to do so in a way that is practical and realistic. So, we went out and compared the cost of junk food snacks and drinks to the cost of fresh fruit and vegetables. We wanted to know if it really was more expensive to eat healthily.

Here’s what we found:

Apple

$0.50

vs.

Candy bar

$1.29

Juice

$1.20

vs.

Soda

$1.89

Banana

$0.80

vs.

Cake

$3.25

2 carrots

$1.26

vs.

Popcorn

$3.05

Fresh Produce Total

$3.76

vs.

Junk Total

$9.48

We thought that it was reasonable to assume that one person could easily consume all of the snacks and drinks listed above every day. So, we took the $5.72 savings that results from eating fruits and vegetables instead of junk food ($9.48-$3.76) and multiplied that amount by 365 days of the year. The final amount was an incredible saving of $2,087.80 per person, per year.

So, if you regularly snack on junk-food items, just think how much cheaper your grocery bill could be!

Other tips for saving money on fruits and vegetables:

Check out Saturday’s Farmers’ Market or one of the local farms. You can sometimes get fresh produce for less.

Frozen vegetables are sometimes cheaper and, as they are frozen soon after harvesting, they retain their valuable nutrients.

The cost of produce varies according to the time of year. Check the price frequently so you don’t miss out on deals!